Systems and methods for measuring and reducing vehicle fuel waste

ABSTRACT

A method of determining an amount of fuel wasted by a vehicle due to sub-optimal performance of at least one component of the vehicle includes receiving information about operation of the vehicle from at least one sensor positioned on the vehicle, categorizing, with a processor, a fuel use by the vehicle as a normal fuel use or a wasted fuel use due to the at least one component performing at a sub-optimal level by comparing the received information to expected information from the at least one sensor when the vehicle is operating at optimal performance, and determining, with the processor, the amount of fuel wasted due to the at least one component operating at the sub-optimal level based on categorized fuel use.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.14/728,646 filed Jun. 2, 2015, which claims priority to U.S. ProvisionalPatent Application No. 62/006,590, filed on Jun. 2, 2014, the contentsof which are incorporated fully herein by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to fuel efficiency of vehicles and to determiningfuel-efficient travel routes.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Improving fuel efficiency of a variety of vehicles continues to be animportant challenge, especially given the role of fossil fuels in bothclimate change and international relations. Many approaches to differentfuels, e.g., biodiesel and electric cars, have been proposed, as havemany different engine designs. One previously overlooked area ofresearch is improving the operation of existing vehicles.

The inventors have recognized that there is a need to measure the fuellost by a vehicle due to suboptimal performance by one or morecomponents of that vehicle. Additionally, the inventors have recognizedthat there is a need to measure the fuel lost by a vehicle due to theapplication of excessive horsepower and torque beyond the minimum amountof horsepower and torque necessary to move the vehicle along its route.Further, the inventors have recognized that it would be desirable toselect a vehicle and a route of travel between a departure and adestination that optimizes fuel economy.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Aspects of the invention relate to methods of and systems fordetermining an amount of fuel wasted by a vehicle due to sub-optimalperformance of at least one component of the vehicle; determining fueluse of a vehicle for at least one segment of a route of travel;optimizing a traveling route of a vehicle between a departure and adestination based on fuel consumption; and determining a fuel economyassociated with a minimum amount of horsepower and torque to move avehicle across at least one segment of a traveling route.

In accordance with one aspect, the invention provides a method ofdetermining an amount of fuel wasted by a vehicle due to sub-optimalperformance of at least one component of the vehicle. The methodincludes receiving information about operation of the vehicle from atleast one sensor positioned on the vehicle; categorizing, with aprocessor, a fuel use by the vehicle as a normal fuel use or a wastedfuel use due to the at least one component performing at a sub-optimallevel by comparing the received information to expected information fromthe at least one sensor when the vehicle is operating at optimalperformance; and determining, with the processor, the amount of fuelwasted due to the at least one component operating at the sub-optimallevel based on the categorized fuel use.

In accordance with another aspect, the invention provides a method ofdetermining fuel use of a vehicle for at least one segment of a route oftravel. The method includes determining one or more vehiclecharacteristics of the vehicle, the vehicle characteristics including atleast one of a vehicle profile or a vehicle load; determining one ormore segment characteristics of the at least one segment, including atleast one of a slope, government imposed traffic controls, volume oftraffic, or weather conditions; and determining, with a processor, afuel economy for the vehicle relating to the at least one segment as afunction of the one or more vehicle characteristics and the one or moresegment characteristics.

In accordance with yet another aspect, the invention provides a methodof optimizing a traveling route of a vehicle between a departure and adestination based on fuel consumption. The method includes determiningone or more vehicle characteristics of the vehicle, the vehiclecharacteristics including at least one of a vehicle profile or a vehicleload; determining one or more segment characteristics of each of aplurality of segments between the departure and the destination, thesegment characteristics including at least one of a slope, governmentimposed traffic controls, volume of traffic, or weather conditions forthe at least one segment; determining, with a processor from the one ormore vehicle characteristics and the one or more segmentcharacteristics, a fuel use for the vehicle relating to each segment inthe plurality of segments between the departure and the destination;determining, with the processor, an optimized traveling route byidentifying a combination of segments between the departure and thedestination providing the lowest level of fuel use for the vehicle asthe optimized traveling route; and presenting the optimized travelingroute.

In accordance with still yet another aspect, the invention provides amethod of determining a fuel economy associated with a minimum amount ofhorsepower and torque to move a vehicle across at least one segment of atraveling route. The method includes sensing information about theoperation of the vehicle from at least one sensor positioned on thevehicle, the information including a current amount of horsepower andtorque; determining one or more vehicle characteristics of the vehicle,the vehicle characteristics including at least one of a vehicle profileor a vehicle load; determining one or more segment characteristics ofthe at least one segment, the segment characteristics including at leastone of a slope, government imposed traffic controls, volume of traffic,or weather conditions; determining, with a processor, a minimum amountof horsepower and torque to move the vehicle across the at least onesegment as a function of the one or more characteristics of the vehicleand the one or more characteristics of the at least one segment;comparing the current amount of horsepower and torque with thedetermined minimum amount of horsepower and torque; and calculating,with the processor, a wasted amount of fuel based on the differencebetween the current amount of horsepower and torque and the determinedminimum amount of horsepower and torque.

In accordance with other aspects, the invention provides a system fordetermining an amount of fuel wasted by a vehicle due to sub-optimalperformance of at least one component of the vehicle. The systemincludes at least one sensor configured to detect fuel use informationof a vehicle during operation of the vehicle, and a controller. Thecontroller may include a categorization module configured to obtain thefuel use information from the at least one sensor for each time frame ina series of time frames and to categorize the fuel use information foreach time frame into either at least one of a plurality of normal fueluse categories or at least one of a plurality of wasted fuel categories,wherein the plurality of wasted fuel categories includes at least onecategory for fuel wasted due to the at least one component of thevehicle operating at a sub-optimal level and at least one category forfuel wasted due to excessive horsepower or excessive torque. Thecontroller may also include a determination module configured tosubtract a total amount of fuel used during each time frame in theseries of time frames where the fuel use information is categorized inthe plurality of wasted fuel categories from a total amount of fuel usedover the series of time frames for storage in the data storage device asthe minimum amount of fuel required for the series of time frames.

In still another aspect, the invention provides a system for determiningfuel use of a vehicle for at least one segment of a route of travel. Thesystem includes at least one sensor configured to sense one or morevehicle characteristics of the vehicle including at least one of avehicle profile or a vehicle load, a database comprising informationregarding one or more segment characteristics of the at least onesegment, including at least one of a slope, government imposed trafficcontrols, volume of traffic, or weather conditions, and a controller.The controller may include a determination module configured todetermine a fuel economy for the vehicle relating to the at least onesegment by comparing the one or more vehicle characteristics sensed bythe at least one sensor to corresponding information in the database.

In yet another aspect, the invention provides a system for optimizing atraveling route of a vehicle between a departure and a destination basedon fuel consumption. The system includes at least one sensor configuredto sense one or more vehicle characteristics of the vehicle including atleast one of a vehicle profile or a vehicle load, a database comprisinginformation regarding one or more segment characteristics of each of aplurality of segments between the departure and the destination, thesegment characteristics including at least one of a slope, governmentimposed traffic controls, volume of traffic, or weather conditions, anda controller. The controller may include a determination moduleconfigured to determine a fuel economy for the vehicle relating each ofa plurality of segments by comparing the one or more vehiclecharacteristics sensed by the at least one sensor to correspondinginformation in the database regarding the one or more segmentcharacteristics of each of a plurality of segments. The controller mayalso include a mapping module configured to identify, from the pluralityof segments, a combination of one or more segments between the departureand the destination providing an optimized fuel economy and configuredto present an optimized traveling route comprising the combination ofone or more segments between the departure and the destination providingan optimized fuel economy.

In another embodiment, the invention provides a method of selecting avehicle for a particular route. The method includes dividing a route oftravel into a plurality of segments; identifying a segmentcharacteristic of each of the plurality of segments; determining, with aprocessor, a fuel use for each of a plurality of vehicles moving acrossthe segments, the fuel use dependent upon the segment characteristic;selecting, with the processor, from the plurality of vehicles, a vehiclehaving a relative optimized fuel economy for the plurality of segmentsby comparing the determined fuel use of each vehicle; and presentinginformation regarding the vehicle having a relative optimized fueleconomy.

In still another embodiment, the invention provides a method ofoptimizing a vehicle having an engine control unit programmed with afirst vehicle profile for a route of travel. The method includesdividing a route of travel into a plurality of segments; identifying asegment characteristic of each of the plurality of segments;determining, with a processor, a second vehicle profile, the secondvehicle profile dependent upon one or more of a fuel use and the segmentcharacteristics; and reprogramming the engine control unit with thesecond vehicle profile.

In yet another embodiment, the invention provides a method ofdetermining a load weight of a vehicle. The method includes sensinginformation about the operation of the vehicle from at least one sensorpositioned on the vehicle, the information including an acceleration ofthe vehicle; determining, with a processor, an amount of energy used bythe vehicle for the acceleration dependent upon a vehicle profile of thevehicle and the acceleration; and determining, with a processor, theload weight dependent upon the amount of energy and the vehicle profile.

In still another embodiment, the invention provides a system foroptimizing a traveling route of a vehicle between a departure and adestination based on fuel consumption. The system includes a databasehaving information regarding one or more vehicle characteristics of thevehicle including at least one of a vehicle profile or a vehicle loadweight sensed by at least one sensor and regarding one or more segmentcharacteristics of each of a plurality of segments between the departureand the destination, the segment characteristics including at least oneof a slope, government imposed traffic controls, volume of traffic, orweather conditions. The system also includes a controller. Thecontroller includes a determination module configured to determine afuel economy for the vehicle relating each of a plurality of segments bycomparing the one or more vehicle characteristics sensed by the at leastone sensor to corresponding information regarding the one or moresegment characteristics of each of a plurality of segments. Thecontroller further includes a mapping module configured to identify,from the plurality of segments, a combination of one or more segmentsbetween the departure and the destination providing an optimized fueleconomy and configured to present an optimized traveling routecomprising the combination of one or more segments between the departureand the destination providing an optimized fuel economy.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention is best understood from the following detailed descriptionwhen read in connection with the accompanying drawings, with likeelements having the same reference numerals. When a plurality of similarelements is present, a single reference numeral may be assigned to theplurality of similar elements with a small letter designation referringto specific elements. When referring to the elements collectively or toa non-specific one or more of the elements, the small letter designationmay be dropped. This emphasizes that according to common practice, thevarious features of the drawings are not drawn to scale unless otherwiseindicated. On the contrary, the dimensions of the various features maybe expanded or reduced for clarity. Included in the drawings are thefollowing figures:

FIG. 1a is a block diagram illustrating a system for optimizing fuel usein accordance with aspects of the present invention;

FIG. 1b is a functional diagram of a system for optimizing fuel use inaccordance with aspects of the present invention;

FIG. 1c is a flow diagram illustrating a process of categorizing fueluse in accordance with aspects of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a flow diagram illustrating a method of determining an amountof fuel wasted due to suboptimal performance of vehicle component(s) inaccordance with aspects of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a flow diagram illustrating a method of determining fuel useof a vehicle for segments between a departure and a destination inaccordance with aspects of the present invention;

FIG. 4a is a flow diagram illustrating a method of optimizing atraveling route of a vehicle between a departure and a destination basedon fuel consumption in accordance with aspects of the present invention;

FIG. 4b is a flow diagram illustrating a method for determining acombination of segments having the lowest level of fuel use for use inthe method illustrated in FIG. 4 a;

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating alternative routes of travel havingmultiple segments in accordance with aspects of the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a flow diagram illustrating a method of determining fuel useassociated with a minimum amount of horsepower and torque to move avehicle across at least one segment of a traveling route in accordancewith aspects of the present invention;

FIG. 7 is a flow diagram illustrating a method of selecting a vehiclefor a route of travel in accordance with aspects of the presentinvention;

FIG. 8 is a flow diagram illustrating a method of optimizing a vehiclehaving an engine control unit for a route of travel in accordance withaspects of the present invention; and

FIG. 9 is a flow diagram depicting a method of determining a load weightof a vehicle in accordance with aspects of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Aspects of the invention are directed to methods of and systems formeasuring the fuel used by a vehicle during a sortie, determining theamount of fuel wasted, selecting travel routes optimized for the fueleconomy of a particular vehicle, and selecting vehicles having the bestrelative fuel economy for traveling a particular route.

As used herein, “vehicle” means any type of transport having an engine(e.g., a piston engine, a diesel engine, a rotary engine, an electricmotor, or turbine engine) that propels the vehicle by consuming fuel. Anexemplary vehicle, used to illustrate several principles of theinvention, is a tractor-trailer carrying commercial freight. Thisdisclosure is not so limited, however, and is also directed to othervehicles such as ground vehicles (e.g., gasoline or hybrid), watercraft,aircraft, or remote controlled vehicles.

As used herein, “fuel” means any energy source that the engine consumesto propel the vehicle and operate auxiliary equipment. Generally thefuel used by the vehicle is a combustible material, such as gasoline,kerosene, diesel fuel, hydrogen, natural gas, propane, and/or ethanol.One of ordinary skill in the art will understand that other fuels,whether combustible, chemical, electrochemical, biological, solar,photovoltaic, nuclear, kinetic, and potential energy source, are alsoenvisioned, are within the scope of the instant invention.

As used herein, “route of travel” or “traveling route” each relate to aroad, course, or way of travel used by a vehicle to move from adeparture to a destination. As one of ordinary skill in the art willunderstand, multiple discrete traveling routes may be used to move avehicle from a departure to a destination. Further, each route of travelmay be further broken down into a series of continuous segments.

As used herein, “driver” or “operator” refers to the individual orhardware/software module that controls the vehicle, either onboard orremotely, during a sortie and whose behavior may affect the amount offuel consumed by the vehicle. One of ordinary skill in the art willunderstand that the methods and systems described herein can be appliedto manually controlled vehicles as well as autonomous, autonomousassist, semi-autonomous, or unmanned vehicles while still remainingwithin the scope of the present invention.

As used herein, “sortie” refers to the period or route of travel betweenthe start of a trip at an origin location (i.e., the departure) and thelocation at the end of the trip (i.e., the destination) for a particularvehicle. The “start” and the “end” of a sortie may correspond to anoperator-input, a time event and/or a position event. For instance, anoperator-input event may be a command input (e.g., a pushbutton) fromthe operator of the vehicle. Time events may include all the activitiesof the vehicle within a time period (e.g., 7:00 AM to 7:00 PM). Positionevents may define the start of a sortie when a vehicle embarks from afirst location (e.g., a start line) and/or at the end of a sortie whenthe vehicle arrives at a second location (e.g., a finish line). Thefirst and second locations may be the same when the vehicle completes around-trip.

As used herein, “fuel economy” refers to the fuel efficiencyrelationship between distance traveled by a vehicle and the amount offuel consumed. An optimized fuel economy, therefore, refers to amaximized distance traveled per amount of fuel consumed.

Generally, aspects of the invention address fuel waste which can occurfrom: (1) fuel waste attributable to actions by the operator and/or (2)fuel waste independent of the operator's actions. Regarding the firstcategory, ideally, the operator would not waste any fuel. That is, theoperator would use the minimum amount of fuel necessary during thesortie. However, during a sortie, an operator may waste fuel due to poordriving technique (e.g., changing gears at the wrong time or travelingat excessive speeds), excessive idling (e.g., failing to turn thevehicle off during long stops) or high-Idling (any vehicle use thatleads to an altered and less than optimal fuel map due to, e.g., higherenergy requirements or RPMs). Also, fuel may be wasted if the vehicle isnot properly configured, such as in the case where a vehicle is setupfor making heavy haul deliveries performs a sortie requiring a largenumber of light deliveries in stop-and-go conditions.

The operator may also waste fuel by operating the vehicle using morehorsepower and torque than the minimum amount required to move thevehicle along a route of travel. Moving the vehicle along a particularroute of travel requires a certain amount of horsepower and torque inorder to overcome forces upon the vehicle including friction, gravity,and aerodynamic drag. The minimum amount of horsepower and torque alsodepends upon, e.g., characteristics of the route of travel includingterrain, distance, weather conditions and government imposed trafficcontrols. One example of potentially wasteful vehicle operation in thisregard is when an operator follows another vehicle too closely,resulting in unnecessary speed changes and excessive horsepower andtorque.

The operator may also select a route of travel which results in greaterfuel use than other routes of travel that may be used to move thevehicle from the departure to the destination. For example, one route oftravel may have route characteristics that cause greater fuel waste whencompared to other routes of travel having different routecharacteristics. Route characteristics which may contribute to fuelwaste include terrain, distance, weather conditions and governmentimposed traffic controls.

Similarly, the operator may select a vehicle having a suboptimal fueleconomy for a given route of travel. When considering the vehicleprofile (e.g., vehicle type, mechanical operating condition,transmission type, engine type including horsepower and torque ratings,fuel type, and carrying capacity including load weight, length, andheight), a particular vehicle may have a suboptimal fuel economy (ascompared to other available vehicles) for traversing a given route oftravel.

Fuel waste may also occur as a result of the mechanical operatingcondition of the vehicle, which is independent of the operator's controlof the vehicle. In particular, fuel waste may occur as the result of oneor more components of the vehicle performing at a suboptimal level. Forexample, an improperly functioning fuel delivery system (e.g., stuckfuel injector, worn fuel pump), emission control system (e.g., stuckexhaust gas recirculation valve, plugged diesel particulate filter), orother component can result in lost fuel.

FIG. 1a is a block diagram illustrating an exemplary vehicle in whichembodiments consistent with the present disclosure may be implemented.The vehicle may include operator controls, a drive train, sensordevices, an audiovisual device and a communication device.

The operator controls are components of the vehicle that receive inputsfrom the operator that affect the vehicle's fuel consumption. Theoperator's controls may include, for example, steering inputs (e.g.,steering wheel, stick, yoke), breaking inputs, trim inputs, throttleinputs and transmission inputs (e.g. gear selection).

The drive train includes vehicle components that transform fuel intokinetic energy to propel the vehicle. The drive train may include anengine, a transmission, and a final drive (e.g., drive wheels,continuous tracks, propeller, etc.).

Sensors are devices that measure or detect real-world conditions andconvert the detected conditions into analog and/or digital informationthat may be stored, retrieved and processed. As shown in FIG. 1, thevehicle's sensors include control input sensors, vehicle position/motionsensors, and drive train sensors. One of ordinary skill in the art willbe aware of other relevant sensors, such as those for sensing mass airflow rate, turbo boost pressure, etc. The control input sensors detectand/or measure changes in the state of the control input devices.

The vehicle motion/position sensors detect and/or measure the vehicle'sposition, orientation, velocity, acceleration and changes in the statethereof. The motion/position sensors may include accelerometers thatmeasure acceleration (translational or angular). Based on the vehicle'sacceleration in any direction over time, its speed and position can bederived. In some embodiments, some or all of the motion/position sensorsare provided by an inertial measurement unit (IMU), which is anelectronic device that measures and reports on a vehicle's velocity,orientation and gravitational forces, using a combination ofaccelerometers and/or gyroscopes without the need for externalreferences. Additionally, the motion/position sensors may be provided bya global positioning system (GPS) navigation device. GPS devices providelatitude and longitude information, and may also calculate directionalvelocity and altitude. The vehicle may also include speed sensors thatdetect the speed of the vehicle. Based on the speed, the sensor may alsodetect the distance traveled by the vehicle (e.g., odometer).Additionally or alternatively, wheel speed sensors may be located on thewheels, the vehicle's differential, or a pilot tube may measure thevelocity of air with respect to the motion of the vehicle. Sensorsexternal to the vehicle (e.g., sensors located on other roadway objectsseparate from the vehicle, such as “connected” bridges or trafficsignals) may similarly measure and transmit vehicle information.

The drive train sensors include devices that determine operatingparameters of the engine and transmission. For example, the drive trainsensors may detect engine speed (e.g., RPM), horsepower, torque, airflow, fuel flow, oxygen, use of auxiliary equipment, and idle speed.Based on this information, the vehicle's fuel consumption may bedetermined at any given time. This information may also be used todetermine, e.g., a current horsepower and torque for the vehicle. Thedrive train sensors may also indicate whether a vehicle component, suchas a component of the fuel delivery system, emission control system orother component is functioning at a suboptimal level.

The audiovisual device generates visual and aural cues to present theoperator with feedback, and coaching. The audiovisual device may includea video display, such as a liquid crystal display, plasma display,cathode ray tube, and the like. The audiovisual device may include anaudio transducer, such as a speaker. Furthermore, the audiovisualdisplay may include one or more operator-input devices, such as bezelkeys, a touch screen display, a mouse, a keyboard and/or a microphonefor a voice-recognition unit. Using the audiovisual device, informationobtained from the vehicle's sensors may be used to provide feedback tothe operator indicating driving actions or navigational instructionsthat should have been taken or avoided to optimize fuel consumption bythe vehicle. The audiovisual device may also be configured to providethe same or similar feedback to autonomous or unmanned vehicles.

The communication device sends and/or receives information from thevehicle over one or more communication channels to other vehicles, oneor more communication channels to external sensor sources (e.g., sensorslocated on external infrastructure devices, traffic management devices,etc.), a remote supervisor, and/or a remote server (not shown). Thecommunication device may provide, for example, information collected bythe sensors and reports generated by the fuel tracking system describingfuel use, fuel wasted, operator performance and vehicle performance to aback-office server (not shown).

The communication device may use wired, fixed wireless, or mobilewireless information networks that communicate a variety of protocols.The networks may comprise any wireless network, wireline network or acombination of wireless and wireline networks capable of supportingcommunication by the vehicle using ground-based and/or space-basedcomponents. The network can be, for instance, an ad-hoc wirelesscommunications network, a satellite network, a data network, a publicswitched telephone network (PSTN), an integrated services digitalnetwork (ISDN), a local area network (LAN), a wide area network (WAN), ametropolitan area network (MAN), all or a portion of the Internet,and/or other communication systems or combination of communicationsystems at one or more locations. The network can also be connected toanother network, contain one or more other sub-networks, and/or be asub-network within another network.

The controller may be one or more devices that exchange information withthe sensors, the memory device, the data storage device, the audiovisualdevice and/or the communication device. The controller includes aprocessor and a memory device. The processor may be a general-purposeprocessor (e.g., INTEL or IBM), or a specialized, embedded processor(e.g., ARM). The memory device may be a random access memory (“RAM”), aread-only memory (“ROM”), a FLASH memory, or the like. Although thememory device is depicted as a single medium, the device may compriseadditional storage media devices.

In some embodiments, the controller is a stand-alone system thatfunctions in parallel with other information processing devices (e.g., amission computer, engine control unit, cockpit information unit, and/orautonomous driving unit) operating on the vehicle. In other embodiments,the functions of the controller may be incorporated within one or moreother information processing devices on the vehicle. In certainembodiments, the controller or certain of its components may be externalto the vehicle (e.g., at a location remote to the vehicle). As describedin more detail below, the controller may be configured to perform someor all of the functionality described herein.

The controller processes the received information to determine theamount of fuel required for the vehicle during a sortie, the amount offuel required for a vehicle moving across a particular route of travelduring the sortie, the amount of fuel required for a vehicle movingacross a segment of a particular route of travel, and the amount of fuelwasted during the sortie. The controller may also identify a particularroute of travel as resulting in the least amount of fuel waste consumedrelative to other potential routes of travel. The determinations made bythe controller may be output via the audiovisual device to providefeedback and/or operator coaching. In one embodiment, the controllerprovides determinations in the form of navigational instructions to theoperator for a route of travel that is more fuel efficient than otherpotential routes of travel. In addition, the determinations may bereported to a supervisor or a back-office server via the communicationdevice.

The data storage device may be one or more devices that store andretrieve information, including computer-readable program instructionsand data. The data storage device may be, for instance, a semiconductor,a magnetic or an optical-based information storage/retrieval device(e.g., flash memory, hard disk drive, CD-ROM, or flash RAM).

The controller interface device may be one or more devices forexchanging information between the host and the devices on the vehicle.The controller interface device may include devices operable to performanalog-to-digital conversion, digital-to-analog conversion, filtering,switching, relaying, amplification and/or attenuation.

Furthermore, the controller interface device may store the receivedinformation for access by the processor. In some embodiments, the datainterface includes a diagnostic data port, such as OBDII (On-boarddiagnostics II) or a J1708/J1939 bus interface as described in theSociety of Automotive Engineers SAE International Surface VehicleRecommended Practice.

The computer-readable program instructions may be recorded on the datastorage device and/or the memory device. As shown in FIG. 1a , theinstructions include a recording module, a categorization module, adetermination module, a feedback module, and a mapping module. Therecording module configures the controller to obtain informationprovided to the controller by the sensors and stores the sensorinformation in the data storage device. The categorization moduleconfigures the controller to categorize the amount of fuel used duringthe sortie based on information received from the sensors and controlinputs. The determination module obtains information from the fuel-uselog and determines the amount of fuel used during all or a portion ofthe sortie, the amount of fuel wasted, and the minimum amount of fuelrequired to complete all or a portion of the sortie. The mapping moduleidentifies one or more routes of travel between a departure and adestination. The mapping module may further break down each route oftravel into a plurality of continuous segments of the route of travel.In one embodiment, the mapping module is remote to the vehicle, e.g., ina back-office server, and may transmit a calculated route to thevehicle.

The data stored on the data storage device includes a vehicle profile,an operator profile, and/or a sortie profile. The vehicle profileincludes Information describing the configuration and predeterminedlimits of the vehicle. For instance, the vehicle profile may include avehicle identifier, a vehicle type, a make, a model, vehicle options,vehicle age, defects, maintenance history and predetermined limitations(e.g., road speed limit). In addition, the vehicle profile may storeinformation about the engine, such as the engine type, size, power,power curve, torque curve and idle speed. Also, the vehicle profile maystore information about the drivetrain, such as gear ratios, wheel size,threshold speeds, optimal engine speed for the gears in thetransmission, and/or a map of the ideal shift patterns and/or throttleposition for the transmission including considering various forms ofshifting gears such as manual, manual assist, automatic, and automatedmanual (AMT) etc. given the conditions the vehicle is being operatedunder. Additionally, the profile includes a variety of informationincluding specifics about the vehicle and the vehicle load and how eachaffects fuel economy. As used herein, “vehicle load” and “vehicle loadweight” refer broadly to both the laden and unladen weight of thevehicle.

The operator profile stores information describing the operatorincluding identification information, experience information,skill-rating information, performance information and goal information.The operator profile may also store information regarding autonomous,autonomous assist, semi-autonomous, or unmanned operation.

The sortie profile stores information corresponding to a sortie. Thesortie profile information may include a sortie type, a sortiedescription and a load description. In addition, the sortie profile mayinclude thresholds corresponding to the sortie, such as speed, distance,time, stops and load. Furthermore, the sortie type may includeinformation describing the sortie, including, the environment of thesortie (e.g., urban, suburban, rural, long-haul, infrastructure devicessuch as bridges and traffic signals, combat, enforcement, patrol, ortraining) along with corresponding performance thresholds. Sortie typeinformation may be stored in a database for later use in the sortieprofile, or it may be obtained in real time via a third partyinformation provider. Exemplary third party information providersinclude companies such as TrafficLand of Fairfax, Va. (trafficreporting), Global Weather Corp. of Boulder, Colo. (weather reporting),and Navteq of Chicago, Ill. (mapping services). In addition, the sortiedescription may include a plurality of predefined routes, waypoints andschedules for the sortie. A load type may include, for example,descriptors of the load including size, weight, scheduled delivery time,fragility and/or hazardous material identifiers.

The data storage device may store logs of information generated duringthe sortie. This information may include a sensor log, a fuel-use logand an operator log. The sensor log receives information from thesensors and stores the information in association with a correspondingtime frame. A time frame is a block of time that is one of a series thatspan the duration of the sortie. The length of the time and the rate atwhich the time frames are recorded may be chosen to provide differentlevels of detail regarding the vehicle's fuel-use and the operator'sperformance. In some embodiments, a substantially continuous sequence offuel-use determinations is recorded in the fuel-use log. For instance,the recording may determine a category of fuel-use for each time frameduring the sortie. The time frame may be, for example, 1/60th of second,one-second, ten-seconds, etc. Other embodiments may, for example, makeperiodic samples. The recording may record a fuel-use determinationevery ten seconds based on a one-second time frame. One of ordinaryskill in the art will understand the aforementioned time frames to beexemplary, and not limiting, and that other time frames (either shorteror longer) will fall within the scope of the present invention.

The fuel-use log is a record of the fuel-used by the vehicle during asortie. As described below, the controller determines the amount of fuelused and the fuel wasted during a sortie. The fuel used and the fuelwasted is determined based on categorizing the fuel used within a numberof fixed and/or variable length time frames during the sortie.

FIG. 1b is a functional block diagram of the exemplary vehicleillustrated in FIG. 1a . The recording module, when executed by theprocessor, configures the controller to obtain information from thevehicle's sensors over a time frame (N) and store the sensor informationas a record in the sensor log identified to the corresponding time frame(N), where “N” represents a current time frame in a series of timeframes [0 . . . N . . . X], where “0” represents the first recorded timeframe during the sortie, “N” represents the current time frame, and “X”represents the final time frame recorded at the end of the sortie. Forthe sake of clarity, FIG. 1b only shows the sensor information recordedfor a single, current time frame (N). The same or similar informationmay be recorded and stored in the sensor log for each time frame 0 to X.In some embodiments, all the sensor information from each time frame maybe retained in the sensor log. In other embodiments, a subset of thesensor information is retained. For example, to reduce the size of thedata storage device, the sensor log may function as a buffer that storesonly the latest several time frames (e.g. N−2, N−1, and N).

The categorization module, when executed by the processor, configuresthe controller to obtain sensor information stored in the sensor log fora time frame and, based on the sensor information, categorize the fuelused in that time frame into one of a plurality of categories. Thecategory information is stored in the fuel-use log identified with thecorresponding time frame (0 . . . N . . . X). The categories include anumber of categories that identify different wasteful uses of fuel(e.g., high-idle, excessive idle, excessive speed, gearing, improperprogressive shift, excessive horsepower and/or torque, and suboptimalperformance of one or more components of a vehicle) and at least onecategory corresponding to non-wasteful uses of fuel (e.g., normal fueluse or a desired stop).

The determination module, when executed by the processor, configures thecontroller to determine how much fuel was consumed beyond what wouldhave been used by best practices or by a vehicle having optimallyperforming components based on information recorded in the fuel-use log.The cumulative amount of fuel wasted during the sortie may be determinedby totaling the fuel categorized as wasted in the time frames 0 to N.Additionally, the fuel wasted over the entire sortie may be determinedby totaling the fuel used for each time frame categorized as wasted inthe time frames 0 to X. Furthermore, the minimum amount of fuel requiredduring the sortie may be determined by subtracting the cumulative amountof fuel wasted from the cumulative fuel used during the sortie.

The reporting module, when executed by the processor, configures thecontroller to obtain information from the fuel-use log and/or thedetermination module to generate a report of the vehicle's and theoperator's performance during the sortie. The reporting module maygenerate a document including the information in the report and providethe information to, for example, the communication device fortransmission to the operator's supervisor and/or back office server. Thereporting module may also share information with the feedback module.Additionally, the reporting module may modify and/or update routesegment characteristics, which characteristics are described below, foruse in future calculations.

The feedback module, when executed by the processor, configures thecontroller to obtain information from the fuel-use log and/or thereporting module. Based on the obtained information, the feedback modulemay generate visual and aural cues for the operator using theaudiovisual device. For instance, the feedback module may generate ahorsepower and torque score that is calculated and displayed to theoperator by the audiovisual device and/or transmitted to the operator'ssupervisor via the communication device. The feedback module may alsodetermine an operator's performance score based on the results generatedby the categorization module and the determination module. The score mayalso be used to compare performance relative to other operators in agroup. The feedback module may also generate visual and auralnavigational instructions (or machine-to-machine instructions, in thecase of autonomous, autonomous assist, semi-autonomous, or unmannedvehicles) directing the operator to move the vehicle across a fuelefficient route of travel. The feedback module may also provide anindication that maintenance is required for one or more components ofthe vehicle that are operating at a suboptimal level and, thereby,contributing to fuel waste.

FIG. 1c is a flow chart illustrating an exemplary process by which thecategorization module categorizes fuel-use. It will be understood fromthe description herein that one or more steps of the methods andprocesses described herein may be omitted and/or performed out of thedescribed sequence while still achieving desired results in accordancewith aspects of the invention.

The amount of fuel wasted during the sortie is determined from thecategorization of a vehicle's fuel use based on information receivedfrom the vehicle's sensors. The categories correspond to conditions ofthe vehicle caused by the operator and/or vehicle configuration. Thecategories include excessive horsepower, torque, idle, high idle,gearing, improper gear selection (e.g., high/low progressive shifting)and excessive speed. By determining the amount of fuel allocated tothese categories during and/or after a sortie, the system may determinethe least amount of fuel required during the sortie. Based on this, afleet manager may determine the operating cost of the fuel for a sortieabsent any waste. Additionally it may determine for the fleet managerthe cost of his/her operators' inefficient behaviors.

The module depicted in FIG. 1c first determines whether the vehicle ismoving. (Step 102) This determination may be made based on informationreceived from the vehicle motion & position sensors (e.g.,accelerometer, INS, GPS).

If the vehicle is not moving (step 102, “No”), the categorization moduledetermines whether the engine speed is below the high-idle thresholdvalue (step 106) using information received from the drive train sensors(e.g., tachometer). As used herein, “high-idle threshold” means that thepower takeoff (“PTO”) is engaged. The categorization module may obtainthis information from, e.g., a direct reading of the PTO engagement fromthe data bus, installed sensors, or direct communication with theauxiliary device being driven. If the PTO is engaged (step 106, “Yes”),the categorization module stores the fuel wasted due to runningauxiliary equipment in the fuel use log in association with the currenttime frame (step 108). The categorization module (step 108) may alsoreceive information from the vehicle data bus or external sensors todetermine that the PTO is engaged. The amount of fuel wasted may bedetermined based on the difference between the measured fuel flow at theengine speed during the current time frame and the fuel flow rate at thehigh-idle threshold. The fuel flow rate at the high-Idle threshold maybe determined based on engine speed information stored in the sensorlog, or It may be determined based on a predetermined fuel flow ratestored in the vehicle profile.

If the vehicle is not moving (step 102, “No”), and the engine speed isnot greater than the high-idle threshold value (step 106, “No”), thecategorization module determines whether the vehicle has been stationaryfor a continuous period of time that exceeds the excessive-idlethreshold value (step 112). If not (step 112, “No”), the categorizationmodule records the fuel used during the current time frame in thecurrent time frame as normal fuel-use (step 114). Otherwise, if thevehicle has been stationary for a continuous period of time that exceedsthe excessive-idle threshold value (step 112, “Yes”), the categorizationmodule records any amount of fuel used for the time period exceeding theexcessive-idle threshold in the category of “excessive idle” (step 110).

If the categorization module determines that the vehicle is moving (step102, “Yes”), the module determines the vehicle's speed (step 116) andthe selected gear of the transmission (step 118), based on informationreceived from the vehicle motion and position sensors and the drivetrain sensors. The module next determines the vehicle's load weight(step 119 a), based on information received from the vehicle motion andposition sensors and the drive train sensors.

The load weight may be calculated based on energy used during vehicleacceleration, compensating for rolling resistance, aerodynamic drag, andelevation changes associated with traversing a given segment of a routeof travel. In particular, one of ordinary skill in the art willunderstand that the force or power required to propel a vehicle at anymoment in time is customarily presented as a “road load equation.” Theequation for determining force has four terms to describe tire rollingresistance, aerodynamic drag, acceleration, and grade effects:

F _(RL) =mgC _(rr)+0.5C _(D) Aρ _(a) V ^(Z) +m(dV/dt)+mg sin(θ)

where mg is vehicle weight, C_(rr) is tire rolling resistance, A is thefrontal area, C_(d) is a drag coefficient based on the frontal area,ρ_(a) is the air density, V is the vehicle velocity, m is vehicle mass,t is time, and sin(8) is the road gradient (uphill positive). NeitherC_(D) nor C_(rr) need be constant with respect to speed, and the termC_(D)A should not be split without careful thought.

For road load power, the force equation is multiplied by velocity:

P _(RL) =mgC _(rr) V+0.5C _(D) Aρ _(a) V ³ +mV(dV/dt)+mg sin(θ)V.

In conventional vehicles the road load power is supplied by an engine,via a transmission and one or more drive axles characterized by anefficiency (η). The engine may also supply power for auxiliary loads(Paux), including cooling fan loads, so that a simple engine powerdemand (PE) model is given by:

$P_{E} = {\frac{P_{SL}}{\eta} + P_{aux}}$

The force F_(RL) may become negative while the vehicle is deceleratingor traveling on a sufficiently steep downgrade, with “negative” powerbeing absorbed through engine braking or friction brakes. Forhybrid-drive vehicles, some of the “negative” power may be absorbed andstored for use in future propulsion of the vehicle. Since hybridvehicles have at least two sources of power during part of their dutycycle, the engine power demand model must be adjusted to account for theflow of power to or from other sources during operation.

In one embodiment according to the present invention, the load weightmay be calculated based on energy used during vehicle acceleration,compensating for rolling resistance, aerodynamic drag, and elevationchanges associated with traversing a given segment of a route of travel.The algorithm used calculates the acceleration during a period of timebased on the rate of change in velocity. The fuel rate is integratedover that same period of time to determine the total energy consumed.The change in altitude is also measured during this time period. Alook-up table may be used to determine the efficiency for the particularmodel of engine and the Road Load Equation is solved to determine theweight. Although the initial implementation assumes that rollingresistance and aerodynamic drag are constant during the time period,this information may also be derived from a time period in the sortiewhere the acceleration is zero on flat terrain.

After determining load weight (step 119 a), the module determinesoperating characteristics (step 119 b). In this step, the module looksat environmental factors associated with the segment being traversedsuch as wind speed, temperature, traffic, and/or road terrain.Information regarding the segment may be included on the sortie profile.For example, the sortie profile may include information describing thecondition of each segment of the sortie, including, the environment(e.g., urban, suburban, rural, long-haul, combat, enforcement, patrol,or training) along with corresponding performance thresholds. The sortieprofile may also include, for a given segment of the route of travel,information regarding the slope (e.g. grade), state and/orcharacteristics of relevant infrastructure, government traffic controls(e.g., speed limits, stop signs, traffic lights), volume of traffic, orweather conditions (e.g., temperature, wind, barometric pressure,precipitation). The information for the sortie profile may come fromhistorical data (e.g. topographic maps, speed limit databases, etc.) orreal-time data feeds (e.g. current weather, traffic, etc.)

If the vehicle's speed is greater than a predetermined speed thresholdvalue (step 320, “Yes”), the fuel used during the time frame isattributed to the excessive speed category in the fuel-use log (step322).

If the vehicle's speed is not greater than the predetermined speedthreshold value (step 320, “No”), the categorization module determineswhether the engine speed is outside a predetermined range for theselected gear (step 330).

Next, the module determines the minimum horsepower and torque requiredto traverse the segment in question (step 123 a). Here, the module maydetermine the minimum energy required to traverse the road segment. Inparticular, the module determines, based on, e.g., the Road Loadequation described above, this minimum value by compensating for weightof the vehicle at the posted speed limit within the given environmentalconditions. Minimum fuel consumption associated with the minimumhorsepower and torque is then determined by the module (Step 124 a)through, e.g., a lookup table which may include values of torque, engineRPM, and fuel rate.

If the engine speed is within the predetermined range for the selectedgear (step 324, “Yes”), the categorization module determines whether theengine speed is in a predetermined fuel-efficient range for the selectedgear (step 326). If so, the categorization module attributes the fuelused during the current time frame as “normal fuel use” (step 314) andstores fuel used in the fuel-use log in association with the attributedcategory. On the other hand, if the engine speed is not in thefuel-efficient range for the selected gear (step 326, “No”), the moduleattributes the amount of fuel used that is outside the efficient rangeto the gearing category and records the determination in the fuel-uselog (step 328).

If the engine speed is outside the predetermined range for the selectedgear (step 324, “No”), the categorization module determines whether theengine speed is outside the predetermined speed range for the selectedgear. If so (step 330, “Yes”), the module attributes the fuel used inthe time frame to fuel waste due to shifting loss (step 332).

FIG. 2 depicts a flow diagram of steps of a process 200 of determiningan amount of fuel wasted by a vehicle due to sub-optimal performance ofat least one component of the vehicle according to aspects of theinvention.

In step 210, information regarding the operation of the vehicle issensed by at least one sensor positioned on the vehicle. In theexemplary system described above, the drive train sensors may sense fuelconsumption by monitoring, e.g., detect engine speed (e.g., RPM),horsepower, torque, air flow, fuel flow, oxygen and idle speed. Thedrive train sensors may also preliminarily determine whether one or morecomponents of the vehicle are performing at a suboptimal level resultingin fuel waste. For example, the drive train sensors may sense one ormore improperly or degraded (i.e., not completely failed due to age orother suboptimal components) functioning components, including a faultyfuel delivery system (e.g. stuck fuel injector, worn fuel pump, etc.),emission control system (e.g. stuck exhaust gas recirculation valve,plugged diesel particulate filter, etc.), or a variety of otherimproperly functioning components that one of ordinary skill in the artwould understand to have an impact on fuel efficiency.

In step 220, the fuel consumed is categorized as a normal fuel use or awasted fuel use due to the at least one component performing at asub-optimal level. One method by which to categorize the fuel use is bycomparing the received information to manufacturer specifications and/orexpected information from the at least one sensor, e.g., historicalinformation obtained when the vehicle was operating at optimal or peakperformance. In this regard, information about engine efficiency ingiven conditions may be stored onboard for later comparison.

In step 230, the amount of fuel wasted due to the at least one componentoperating at the sub-optimal level based on categorized fuel use isdetermined. For a given time period (e.g. sortie), the fuel wasted maybe determined by totaling the fuel used for each time frame categorizedas wasted in the time frames 0 to X.

In an alternative embodiment, performance information related to thevehicle is determined. The performance information is determined bycomparing the amount of fuel wasted to the overall amount of fuelconsumed by the vehicle. The performance information may include anoverall amount of fuel wasted due to the one or more vehicle componentsfunctioning at a suboptimal level. The performance information may alsoinclude a new potential fuel economy (expressed in terms of, e.g., milesper gallon) if the component(s) performing at a suboptimal level arebrought back into compliance.

The performance information may be presented to the operator and/or oneor more others such as the operator's supervisor (or, in the case ofautonomous, autonomous assist, semi-autonomous, or unmanned systems, viamachine-to-machine communication). Further, the performance informationmay be presented visually or aurally, as described above with respect tothe feedback module. The visual or aural cues may take the form of anindication that fuel is being wasted due to a component performing at asuboptimal level, the amount of fuel being wasted, and the identity ofthe component(s) causing the fuel waste. The performance information mayalso include a prompt that a particular component is coming due formaintenance, and that the failure to conduct such maintenance couldresult in the loss of fuel economy. The visual or aural cues may occurduring or after the sortie.

The performance information may also be presented in the form of areport.

FIG. 3 is a flow diagram of a method of determining fuel use of avehicle for segments between a departure and a destination. In step 310,one or more vehicle characteristics of the vehicle are determined. Thevehicle characteristics include, e.g., at least one of a vehicle profileor a vehicle load weight. Information regarding the vehicle profile maybe acquired from the data storage device. Vehicle profile informationmay include, e.g., a vehicle type, a make, a model, vehicle options,vehicle age, defects, maintenance history and predetermined limitations(e.g., road speed limit). Information regarding the vehicle load mayalso be obtained from a data storage device including a sortie profile,or calculated using the method provided above. As described above, thesortie profile information may include a sortie type, a sortiedescription and a load description. Alternatively, the load weight ofthe vehicle may be determined based on a sensor, such as the drive trainsensor, sensing the energy used during vehicle acceleration, whilecompensating for other factors such as rolling resistance, aerodynamicdrag, and changes in elevation of the terrain.

In step 320, one or more segment characteristics of the segments betweena departure and a destination are determined. Information regarding thesegment may be included on the sortie profile. For example, the sortieprofile may include information describing the condition of each segmentof the sortie, including, the environment (e.g., urban, suburban, rural,long-haul, relevant infrastructure, combat, enforcement, patrol, ortraining) along with corresponding performance thresholds. The sortieprofile may also include, for a given segment of the route of travel,information regarding the slope (e.g. grade), government trafficcontrols (e.g., speed limits, stop signs, traffic lights), volume oftraffic, or weather conditions (e.g., temperature, wind, barometricpressure, precipitation). The information for the sortie profile maycome from historical data (e.g. topographic maps, speed limit databases,etc.) or real-time data feeds (e.g. current weather, traffic, etc.).

In step 330, anticipated fuel use for each segment that may be traversedby the vehicle is determined. In one embodiment, the fuel use is avariable which is dependent upon both the vehicle characteristic(s) andthe segment characteristic(s), which may be determined using a lookuptable. The lookup table preferably includes a range of fuel economieswhich may be achieved by vehicles having certain characteristicstraversing segments having certain characteristics. Values in the lookuptable may be adjusted for, e.g., load and weather characteristics. Thepotential fuel economy, based on subtracting known waste as describedabove, may be expressed as MPG.

The fuel economy determined in step 330 may be presented to the operatorand/or others such as the operator's supervisor.

In one embodiment, fuel use is determined for each of a plurality ofsegments. The plurality of segments may include some or all of thesegments comprising one or more potential routes of travel.

Routes of travel may be divided into a plurality of segments. The lengthof each segment may be the same or it may vary among segments. Onemanner of determining the length of each segment is by reference toroute of travel characteristics (e.g., at least one of roadintersections, slope, government imposed traffic controls, volume oftraffic, or weather conditions). Where a given route of travelcharacteristic, such as slope, varies greatly, smaller segment lengthsmay be desirable to increase the accuracy of the fuel economy determinedfor each segment. For example, a flat, 1 mile length of terrain having aconstant speed limit may be one segment, while the next segment could becomprised of a 0.1 mile stretch of terrain having a 1% grade.

Turning to FIG. 4a , a flow diagram for a method of optimizing atraveling route of a vehicle between a departure and a destination basedon fuel consumption in accordance with aspects of the present inventionis provided. In step 410, one or more vehicle characteristics aredetermined. As described above, the vehicle characteristics include,e.g., at least one of a vehicle profile or a vehicle load-weight.

In step 420, one or more segment characteristics for each of a pluralityof identified segments between the departure and destination isdetermined. The plurality of segments may be identified based on ad hocgenerated routes (such as those generated by an onboard globalpositioning system) or predefined routes (such as those stored by thesortie profile) between a given departure and destination. Eachpotential route of travel may be divided into a plurality of segmentsbased on variations in route of travel characteristics as describedabove. For example, FIG. 5 depicts a plurality of segments, includingsegments 515 and 516, within three potential routes 530, 535, and 540.In this embodiment, each segment is defined by a line between two dots.Certain segments, such as segment 515 may fall within more than onepotential route of travel.

Segment characteristic(s) (e.g., slope, government traffic controls,volume of traffic, or weather conditions) may then be determined foreach of the identified segments.

In step 430, a fuel use may be determined for a portion or all of theidentified segments. The fuel use for each segment may be identifiedusing, e.g., the lookup table described above, based on the vehiclecharacteristics and the segment characteristics as inputs.

In step 440, the combination of segments resulting in a continuous pathbetween the departure and the destination (i.e., a route of travel)which achieves the lowest level of fuel use is determined. Turning toFIG. 4b , step 440 is more fully described. In step 441, multiple routesof travel that include one or more segments between the departure anddestination are identified. Fuel use values are assigned to each segmentin step 442. For each combination of segments resulting in a continuouspath between the departure and the destination, the fuel use values foreach segment therein is summed in step 443. Then, in step 444, the routeof travel having the combination of segments resulting in the lowesttotal fuel use is identified.

FIG. 5 illustrates multiple routes of travel 530, 535, and 540 betweendeparture 510 and destination 550. Each route of travel includes aplurality of segments, such as segment 515. Route of travel 530 (shownwith bolded segments) is identified in FIG. 5 as the route of travelresulting in the lowest total fuel use.

In an exemplary embodiment, alternative routes having low total fueluses are also identified should the operator have a preference beyondfuel economy (such as travel time) among the identified routes. Forexample, each of the routes of travel 530, 535, and 540 could bepresented to the operator, along with a projected fuel use for each.

The optimized travel route may also include information regarding makingfuel efficient stops during the course of a sortie, e.g., at variouswaypoints such as rest stops. For example, rest stop 525, which is atthe bottom of a large hill, may result in fuel waste over the course ofa sortie as compared to a rest stop 520, which is at the top of thelarge hill. This is because it takes more horsepower and torque (andthus more fuel) to bring a truck (which stopped at the bottom of thehill) up to speed while climbing the large hill than it does for thesame truck (which did not stop at the bottom of the hill) to maintainthat speed. The optimized travel route may also take into considerationother obstacles such as route blockages caused by draw bridges or traincrossing (which obstacles may be reported through IOT or which are knownto have a certain probability of being up during a particular time ofday).

The optimized travel route may be presented, in accordance with themethods described above, in step 450. The optimized travel route may bepresented as, e.g., navigational instructions communicated to theoperator of the vehicle during operation of the vehicle.

In an exemplary embodiment, presenting the route of travel is (e.g., theoptimized route of travel) may include presenting information to thesupervisor of the operator via back-end server. The supervisor of theoperator may be a dispatcher in charge of assembling/coordinatingsorties for the company. Turning to FIG. 6, a flow diagram depicting amethod of determining fuel use associated with a minimum amount ofhorsepower and torque to move a vehicle across at least one segment of atraveling route in accordance with aspects of the present invention isprovided. In step 610, information about the operation of a vehicle issensed by at least one sensor position on the vehicle. The informationmay include a current amount of horsepower and torque sensed by, e.g.,the drive train sensor.

In step 620, one or more vehicle characteristics of the vehicle aredetermined. As described above, the vehicle characteristics may includeat least one of a vehicle profile or a vehicle load. Alternatively or inaddition, vehicle load information may be determined directly fromself-reporting freight.

In step 630, one or more segment characteristics are determined for agiven segment in a route of travel.

In step 640, a minimum amount of horsepower and torque to move thevehicle across the at least one segment is determined. In oneembodiment, the minimum amount of horsepower and torque is a variablewhich is dependent upon both the vehicle characteristic(s) and thesegment characteristic(s), which may be determined using a lookup table.As described above, values in the lookup table may be adjusted for,e.g., load and weather characteristics. This determination may alsoinclude compensating for the vehicle weight while the vehicle istraveling at the posted speed limit within that particular segment. Thelookup table preferably includes a range of minimum amount of horsepowerand torque which associated with vehicles having certain characteristicstraversing segments having certain characteristics. By supplying thevehicle characteristic(s) and the segment characteristic(s), the minimumamount of horsepower and torque may thus be determined from the lookuptable. This determination can also provide a basis to assess how wellthe vehicle is matched to the proposed sortie.

In step 650, the amount of wasted fuel due to excess horsepower andtorque beyond the determined minimum amount of horsepower and torque isdetermined. In one embodiment, this value is calculated based on thedifference between the current and minimum amounts of horsepower andtorque. In one embodiment, the fuel use associated with the minimumamount of horsepower and torque is determined through a lookup tablewhich maps fuel use to torque and engine RPM. The fuel use associatedwith the minimum amount of horsepower and torque may then be subtractedfrom the overall fuel use to determine the amount of fuel wasted due toexcess horsepower and torque.

In an alternative embodiment, performance information related to thevehicle is determined. The performance information is determined bycomparing the amount of fuel wasted to the overall amount of fuelconsumed by the vehicle. The performance information may include anoverall amount of fuel wasted due to the excessive horsepower andtorque. The performance information may also include a new potentialfuel economy if the minimum amount of horsepower and torque is suppliedby the operator.

The performance information may be presented to either or both of theoperator and the operator's supervisor according to the methodsdescribed above.

Turning to FIG. 7, a flow diagram depicting a method of selecting avehicle for a route of travel in accordance with aspects of the presentinvention is provided.

In step 710, a route of travel is divided into a plurality of segments.

In step 720, one or more segment characteristics for each of a pluralityof identified segments between the departure and destination isdetermined.

In step 730, a fuel use for each of a plurality of vehicles movingacross the segments is determined, where the fuel use Is dependent uponthe segment characteristic. In one embodiment, the fuel use is avariable which is dependent upon both the vehicle characteristic(s) andthe segment characteristic(s), which may be determined using a lookuptable. The lookup table preferably includes a range of fuel uses whichmay be achieved by vehicles having certain characteristics traversingsegments having certain characteristics. In this manner, a fuel use canbe determined for each vehicle traversing each segment of the route oftravel.

In step 740, the vehicle having a relative optimized fuel economy forthe plurality of segments as compared to other vehicles of the pluralityof vehicles is selected. For each vehicle in the plurality of vehicles,an overall fuel use may be determined by summing the fuel use by thatvehicle for each segment of the route of travel. The vehicle having thelowest overall fuel use may be selected and, subsequently, presented.

In an exemplary embodiment, step 740 further Includes selecting morethan one vehicle having a relative optimized fuel economy. In thisembodiment, each vehicle having a relative optimized fuel economy may bepresented.

Turning to FIG. 8, a flow diagram depicting a method of optimizing avehicle having an engine control unit (“ECU”) for a route of travel inaccordance with aspects of the present invention is provided. Generally,this method permits changing the performance of the vehicle by virtue ofsoftware loaded in the ECU. The ECU will have a first vehicle profile,i.e., the initial vehicle profile. The first vehicle profile may be thedefault vehicle profile, or it may be a vehicle profile based on aprevious similar or identical sortie.

In step 810, a route of travel is divided into a plurality of segments.

In step 820, one or more segment characteristics for each of a pluralityof identified segments between the departure and destination isdetermined.

In step 830, a second vehicle profile for the vehicle moving across thesegments is determined. The second vehicle profile may be selected so asto result in a lower fuel use by the vehicle traversing the segment(s).The fuel use for the vehicle configured with the current vehicle profilemay be determined through a lookup table. This lookup table preferablyincludes a range of fuel uses which may be achieved by specific vehicleprofiles for vehicles traversing segments having certaincharacteristics. In this manner, a fuel use can be determined for avehicle configured with the current vehicle profile while traversingeach segment of the route of travel. In one embodiment, the secondvehicle profile is also determined using a lookup table, whichpreferably includes a range of fuel uses which may be achieved byspecific vehicle profiles for vehicles traversing segments havingcertain characteristics. Comparisons with previous similar or identicalsorties may be desirable in determining and/or confirming the secondvehicle profile. In this manner, a second vehicle profile can bedetermined for a vehicle such that, when the vehicle is configured withthe second vehicle profile, it will consume less fuel while traversingeach segment of the route of travel than the vehicle as configured withthe current vehicle profile.

The second vehicle profile may also be selected based on location orenvironmental conditions. For example, the second vehicle profile may beselected so as to result in compliance with a posted speed limit. Inthis exemplary embodiment, the speed governor on the vehicle may beadjusted to match the posted speed limit for one or more of the segmentsof the route of travel. The ECU may also be reprogrammed to loweremissions when the vehicle enters a location that is subject to a smogadvisory.

In step 840, the vehicle may be configured with the second vehicleprofile by, e.g., reprogramming the ECU. For example, the vehicleprofile may be changed by reprogramming the ECU to optimize fuelconsumed by a vehicle while traversing segment(s) within a route oftravel. Reprogramming may include changing the fuel/horsepower/torquemap based on a load weight of the vehicle. The maximum availablehorsepower may be increased when the vehicle is heavily loaded or,conversely, decreased when carrying a lighter load. Reprogramming ofthis nature desirably prevents the operator from demanding morehorsepower than would be required and would improve the overall fueleconomy. One of ordinary skill in the art will understand from thisdisclosure that similar reprogramming may also be appropriate withrespect to, e.g., segment terrain (flat vs. hilly, highway vs. citydriving).

Turning to FIG. 9, a flow diagram depicting a method of determining aload weight of a vehicle in accordance with aspects of the presentInvention is provided.

In step 910, information is sensed about the operation of the vehiclefrom at least one sensor positioned on the vehicle, the informationincluding an acceleration of the vehicle.

In step 920, a processor determines an amount of energy used by thevehicle for the acceleration dependent upon a vehicle profile of thevehicle and the acceleration. According to one embodiment, the amount ofenergy used by the vehicle is determined by integrating the fuel flowrate over the time period, multiplied by the energy density of the fuel(which is, e.g., roughly 36.4 Mj/l for diesel fuel). The energy Ismultiplied by the efficiency of the powertrain (from the vehicleprofile). This gives the energy required to cause the laden vehicle(i.e., the weight of the vehicle plus any freight and other encumbrancescarried by the vehicle) to accelerate at the measured rate ofacceleration over the change in altitude (which may be measured via GPSor other sensor or derived from terrain Information in a database). Fromthis calculation, the weight of the entire laden vehicle may bedetermined.

In step 930, a processor determines the load weight dependent upon theamount of energy and the vehicle profile. The load weight may bedetermined, in one embodiment, by subtracting the weight of the unladenvehicle (which information may be stored in the vehicle profile) fromthe weight of the entire laden vehicle obtained in step 920.

In one embodiment, the method further includes obtaining loadInformation from one or more units of freight which actively orpassively report load Information. This information may be directlyobtained from active and/or passive tags (RFID) which report the freightcharacteristics (including load) either through self-reporting or bybeing Interrogated. The processor may use this load Information as across reference or direct input in determining the overall load weight.

Although the Invention Is Illustrated and described herein withreference to specific embodiments, the invention is not intended to belimited to the details shown. Rather, various modifications may be madein the details within the scope and range of equivalents of the claimsand without departing from the Invention.

What is claimed is:
 1. A data storage device embodyingcomputer-executable instructions, that when executed by a processor,cause the processor to optimize a vehicle having an engine control unitprogrammed with a first vehicle profile for a route of travel byexecuting operations comprising: dividing a route of travel into aplurality of segments; identifying a segment characteristic of each ofthe plurality of segments; determining, with the processor, a secondvehicle profile, the second vehicle profile dependent upon one or moreof a fuel use and the segment characteristics; and reprogramming theengine control unit with the second vehicle profile.
 2. The data storagedevice of claim 1, wherein the segment characteristic is selected fromthe group consisting of a slope, distance, government imposed trafficcontrols, volume of traffic, and weather conditions.
 3. The data storagedevice of claim 2, wherein the segment characteristic is a governmentimposed traffic control, and the determining operation comprisesdetermining the second vehicle profile dependent upon the governmentimposed traffic control.
 4. The data storage device of claim 1, whereinthe first vehicle profile is associated with a first fuel use, and thedetermining operation comprises determining the second vehicle profiledependent upon the fuel use, such that the fuel use of the secondvehicle profile is less than the first fuel use for one or more of theplurality of segments.
 5. The data storage device of claim 1, whereinthe identifying operation further comprises identifying one or moreadditional segment characteristics.
 6. A system comprising: memory; aprocessor coupled to the memory, wherein the processor is configured tooptimize a vehicle having an engine control unit programmed with a firstvehicle profile for a route of travel by being further configured to:divide a route of travel into a plurality of segments; identify asegment characteristic of each of the plurality of segments; determine,with the processor, a second vehicle profile, the second vehicle profiledependent upon one or more of a fuel use and the segmentcharacteristics; and reprogram the engine control unit with the secondvehicle profile.
 7. The data storage device of claim 6, wherein thesegment characteristic is selected from the group consisting of a slope,distance, government imposed traffic controls, volume of traffic, andweather conditions.
 8. The data storage device of claim 7, wherein thesegment characteristic is a government imposed traffic control, and thedetermining operation comprises determining the second vehicle profiledependent upon the government imposed traffic control.
 9. The datastorage device of claim 6, wherein the first vehicle profile isassociated with a first fuel use, and the determining operationcomprises determining the second vehicle profile dependent upon the fueluse, such that the fuel use of the second vehicle profile is less thanthe first fuel use for one or more of the plurality of segments.
 10. Thedata storage device of claim 6, wherein the identifying operationfurther comprises identifying one or more additional segmentcharacteristics.